Before The Worst
by SofiaSofiaSofia
Summary: A slightly different take on the events of Season 7. Arizona returned from Africa and Callie was pregnant. What if it took more for Arizona to realize that this really could work? Calzona.
1. Harder Than It Needs To Be

**The idea for this fic has been in my head for months. I've literally written three (slightly) different versions. Finally, I decided to post this one. **

** It is a slightly different take on the events of Season 7. Arizona returned from Africa and Callie was pregnant. What if it took more for Arizona to realize that this really could work? It is Calzona, I promise. However, their relationship is not in a great place for the first few chapters, even if they are both still clearly in love with each other. Sometimes things can't be perfect or easy, but it will work out somehow.  
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**Thanks for reading. **

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><p>"Why do tiny people have to break bones?" Callie asked Mark as they ran into each other in the hall at work.<p>

"Because they think they're just like superheroes, so they jump off of the furniture and try to fly?"

"I wasn't being literal," she told him with an eye roll.

"I know," he said. "Need a chaperone?"

"Yeah, cause that'll make it so much less awkward," she answered. "Ex-girlfriend, me, and my baby daddy all in one room."

Callie placed a hand on her rounding belly. At twenty-three weeks pregnant, she was definitely showing now and she felt like she was always throwing her pregnancy in Arizona's face. Working with her was becoming more and more difficult.

"Just go do your job, Torres," he told her. "That's all you can do."

She drew a deep breath. "I know," she said.

"Robbins could have paged somebody else from Ortho. She didn't because, even if it's awkward, she knows you're the best. So go fix the kid."

"Is it bad that I wonder how things would be if I wasn't pregnant?" she asked, as she felt their little one move within her. "I feel like a really bad mom for thinking that, but I can't help it."

"You're not a bad mom," he told her. "Bad moms don't obsess over child psychology books and take parenting classes even though they're good with babies. And no, it's not bad that you wonder. I wonder the same thing about Lexie. But the important thing is that we've put Baby first. And we love him even if we miss our girls."

Callie smiled. Somehow her best friend always said the right thing. They may not have been a couple, but he was the biggest support she had these days and she was so grateful for him. He was right. They loved this baby and that was the most important thing. Wondering how things could have been didn't mean she didn't want this baby. She had always wanted a baby. This was her dream come true. She just wished Arizona could still be a part of that dream, too.

"Him, huh?"

"We both know it's a boy."

"We don't know, though," she said.

"Because somebody wouldn't find out," he replied. "We both think it's a boy. Why not just find out? It's not like we wouldn't be just as happy with a girl."

"You're not getting me to budge, Mark," she said.

"Fine," he said. "Hey, I heard a name I like today."

"What is it?"

"Max."

"My best friend in high school had a dog named Max," she said. "It's a dog's name."

"Is not."

"We'll talk tonight," she said. "You, me, the baby name book, and a pint of that super chocolatey ice cream. Sound good?"

"It's a date," he smiled.

"Don't say the 'd' word," she said.

"I was kidding," he replied. "It's not a date. That's the lamest date ever."

"Lamest?" she asked. "Is that even a word? Apparently I'll be helping with all the English homework, Dad."

"It so is. Whatever," he said. "You have bones to go fix."

"That I do," she nodded.

* * *

><p><em>"What are you saying?" Callie asked her girlfriend.<em>

_"I…" Arizona paused. _

_"You what?" she asked. "You're breaking up with me? Again? Arizona, nothing's changed. When you came back and I told you I was pregnant, you decided to be a part of my plan. We're making it work."_

_"It's not working for me, though."_

_"I can't cut Mark out of all of this," she said. "He's –"_

_"I know what he is," she said. "Trust me, I'm never, ever gonna be able to forget that part."_

_"Arizona, I can't apologize for this," she said. "I feel really bad that this has been hard for you, but I can't tell you I'm sorry it happened. I just can't."_

_ "I know you're gonna be such a good mom, and I know you want this baby so badly. I know Mark does, too. I've been trying here. I've wanted more than anything to just accept that. That all three of us can be in this. That I can be Mommy. But I can't…I feel like I don't belong here. You, Mark, and this kid are the family and I'm just that annoying person who wants so badly to be involved, but I just don't fit."_

_"You fit."_

_"Calliope…"_

_"Arizona, you fit," she said. "What is it that makes you think you don't?" she asked. _

_"What is it that you think should make me feel like I do?" she asked. "It's your baby. It's Mark's baby. I walk in here last night and Mark's talking to your belly."_

_"I'll talk to him," she said. "I mean, he wants to be involved, but I think he can live without talking to my belly. He doesn't have to –"_

_"I've never talked to your belly," she said. "Yeah, I saw the heartbeat and we had a moment and I thought of that baby as mine, but I don't do anything like that."_

_"You don't have to talk –"_

_"Excited moms do that kind of thing."_

_"Arizona –"_

_"I've tried to change my mindset," she said. "I've tried to think of it as my kid. I really have. And I still think that that's the most beautiful baby I've ever seen on an ultrasound. But I think that because you're its mom. Not because I am. I've been fooling myself. I just…I don't feel what you and Sloan feel. I thought I did, but I don't."_

_"It'll come," Callie said, officially crying now. "When this baby's born, it'll come. So you don't feel connected to what? My stomach? No big deal."_

_"And if it doesn't come, then what?" she asked. "I don't think it's fair that this baby know me if I'm just gonna end up leaving. I might as well…"_

_"You regretted leaving before."_

_"That was different," she said, giving her a kiss on the cheek. "That was when I thought –"_

_"I love you," she told her. "Arizona, please."_

_"I love you, too," she said, as tears ran down her cheeks as well. "But I just can't do this."_

_"Please, don't," Callie replied as Arizona pulled her into a hug._

_ "You take care of yourself, okay? And I hope one day you find somebody who does feel like that's their baby. Because you deserve that. So does that baby."_

* * *

><p>"Thank you," Arizona said, breaking the awkward silence between her and Callie as they scrubbed out after the little boy's surgery that had forced them to be in the same operating room for almost five hours.<p>

It wasn't that they were angry with each other or anything like that. Those feelings had come up, but they were quickly replaced by feelings of simply missing each other. They didn't really talk because they didn't know what to say. They wanted to know what was going on in each other's lives because they wanted to be sure that the other one was okay. At the same time, the last thing they wanted was to know what was going on in each other's lives.

"Just doing my job," Callie said, willing herself to share a friendly smile with her ex.

"Still," she replied. "I appreciate it."

"Do you need me for anything post-op or…?"

"Go home," she said. "You've been on your feet all day. Take care of yourself."

"I'm okay."

"Well, good," she smiled. "But it's fine. He's my patient."

"Okay."

Silence fell over the moment once again. Both women were looking at each other, but neither one knew what to say.

"I hate this," Callie said.

"Me too."

"We could be friends."

"In order to actually just be friends, we can't still have feelings for each other."

"Why are we doing this, Arizona? You're just admitting you still have feelings for me and then that's it? So I'm having a baby. And maybe you don't feel bonded to it. You'll have its whole life for that to come."

"And Mark?"

"Mark's always going to be my friend," she replied. "And he'll be a big part of our lives. But I'm not in love with Mark."

"You're sure?"

"Absolutely," she said. "Arizona, you're so good with kids. I know you could love this kid. And it would adore you."

"Don't make this harder than it needs to be."

"I won't if you won't," she said.


	2. Trauma

**The amount of reviews and alerts I've gotten for this story is amazing. Thank you so much!**

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><p>When Callie got home, she realized she didn't have any of the ice cream she was craving, so she decided to head to the store to get some.<p>

However, when Mark came over an hour later, his best friend wasn't there. He called her phone and got no answer three different times, so he figured she had probably ended up getting called back to work for some reason. After all, especially since they lived so close to the hospital, this happened often.

He went in through the entrance to Emergency thinking that, if she had been called back suddenly, he would probably find her there. He didn't see her, though.

"Do you know if Callie's here?" he asked Derek.

"I haven't seen her," he said, putting on a trauma gown and a pair of gloves.

Mark watched as a representative of most specialties came running to join Derek. Something big had happened and they were waiting for the patient or patients to get to the hospital.

"What happened?" he asked. "Need me for anything?"

"Pregnant woman with severe head and chest trauma," Bailey answered. "Collided with a truck, and wasn't wearing a seatbelt."

"So she went through the windshield," Owen added.

Mark cringed, but before he could say anything, the patient was being rushed through the doors.

"How many weeks is she?" Lucy asked the paramedics.

"Not sure," one of them answered. "She's conscious, but we weren't able to get a straight answer. And she was the only one in the car."

"That's –" Lucy said, looking down.

Mark finally got a good look, too. It felt like this whole thing was suddenly happening in slow motion. He was used to trauma situations, but he never expected to see what he saw. The woman on the stretcher – the woman who had been thrown through a windshield – was Callie.

"What the -?" he asked, reaching for his own yellow gown.

"Mark, let us do this," Derek said. "We've got this." He looked down to Callie. "Callie, we've got this okay?"

"Has she lost consciousness at all?" Owen asked the paramedics.

"Not since we arrived on the scene," he was told.

"I'm doing this," Mark demanded as they rushed off with Callie. "I have to!"

They took Callie into a trauma room, but Richard took a minute before going in. He understood exactly why Mark felt like he had a place in that room, but he just couldn't let him in.

"Sloan, you can't do this," he told him. "That…in there, that's your family. You can't think like a doctor. You'll think like a friend and a dad. Torres needs surgeons."

"They're everything I have," Mark said.

"I know," he nodded.

"She needs me in there," he told him. "Please."

"Fine," he caved, just wanting to get in the room now. "Out of the way, okay?"

"Got it."

* * *

><p>When they went in, the first thing Mark saw was Lucy trying to find a fetal heart rate. Everyone else was busy stabilizing Callie, but the baby was Lucy's focus, which Mark was glad for. Callie needed help, but so did their baby. He needed both of them to make it.<p>

"I can't hear anything," Lucy said.

"Keep trying," he told her.

"Sloan, we don't need comments right now," Bailey said.

She was having a hard enough time as it was. Callie wasn't just any patient. The last thing she needed was to hear the desperation in Mark's voice.

"Got it," Lucy said as the wonderful whooshing sound began to be heard. "Baby's stable."

Callie's eyes locked on Mark.

"Torres, I need you to stay still," Derek told her. "Can you do that for me?"

"Callie, the baby's okay," Mark told her. "And you're gonna be okay, too. Both of you will get through this. Hear me?"

"Mark…" she forced out.

"I'm right here," he told her. "It's okay, Callie."

"Sorry," she replied weakly.

"Don't be sorry," he said. "Just stay with us. That's all you need to do."

"We're going to the O.R. now, okay Torres?" Richard asked, surprised that Callie was still conscious and even speaking. "We've got you."

"Mark…"

"Mark'll be in the gallery," Owen said. "He's here and he's gonna be here when you get out. Don't worry about him."

"Mark…"

"What?" Mark asked, moving closer.

He knew Callie and he knew there was something she wanted to say that felt important enough to be said right now. She wasn't going to give up until he knew what it was.

"If…if… -"

With that, Callie suddenly lost consciousness, causing all of the monitors to sound. Without even communicating it, everyone began racing to the O.R.

* * *

><p>Five hours later, the doctors trailed out of the O.R. one by one, but Mark already knew what they were going to say.<p>

"I can't," he said.

"We don't need a decision right now," Derek replied. "Torres is stable."

"But the sooner we do something, the better," Teddy said. "Callie's heart is –"

"I know," he said. "Callie'd have a better chance if the baby wasn't a part of all this."

"She would," Bailey nodded.

"And Fields is in over her head."

"I'm calling Addison," Derek said. "If anybody can save the baby, it's her."

"Is there anything we can do, Sloan?" Richard asked.

"Tell me what to do," he said. "Just…tell me."

"We can't do that," Owen replied. "You know the pros and cons, but we can't tell you what choice to make."

"I never thought this was even a hard choice," he said. "The baby's not here. Callie is. I always thought that was a no-brainer. But that's my kid. Here or not, that's my kid. And Callie wants that kid."

"Are you saying…?"

"I don't know what I'm saying," he said. "How the hell did this happen?"

"Derek," he said.

"Yeah?"

"What would you do?"

"Mark, I –"

"If that was Meredith," he said. "What would you do?"

"I don't know," he admitted, shaking his head.

"Go sit with Callie," Bailey said. "Maybe that'll give you some clarity."

"It won't," he said. "I have to pick which one of them I wanna give a decent chance. Do you know how impossible that is?"

"We can try to save both of them," Owen said.

"But is that really likely?" he asked. "We all know it's not."

"No."

"Can somebody call her dad?" he asked. "She'd want him to know."

"I can," Lexie nodded.

* * *

><p>"We think you'd want to give Baby the best chance," he was telling Callie about an hour later.<p>

Mark had spoken with Carlos Torres – who was doing his best to fly out as soon as he could – and they had decided that Callie wouldn't want them to deliver the baby so soon unless they absolutely had to. She wouldn't want to die either, but she would do anything for her child. Saving both of them wasn't likely, but they had to try.

Callie's father wasn't exactly Mark's biggest fan, but he did see that Mark clearly knew his daughter well and cared for her. He had told Mark that he was glad that he was there for Callie because, right this second, he couldn't be.

"So, we're not delivering Baby yet. Addison's coming. She's going to figure out what to do. She already told us to start steroids to help develop the baby's lungs just in case. You're almost twenty-four weeks. With the help of the steroids, this could work out. Okay? Even if we have to deliver it. Which we don't want to have to."

"Good," he heard a voice say from the doorway.

He looked up and saw Arizona. "You left her. Twice. You wanted nothing to do with this. You couldn't handle it when everything was fine. How can you handle it now?"

"I still love her, Mark," Arizona told him. "And when I heard –"

She started tearing up.

"This is my family. You didn't want this, Robbins."

"I didn't think she'd be clinging to life, though."

"Well, right now, she's stable. The baby's stable. You've seen her. Enough."

"It's good that you're not delivering the baby yet," she said. "Baby's born this early are so likely to have a whole host of problems."

"You don't think I know that? You don't think I'm not imagining my life with them both as vegetables? Believe me, I get exactly what could happen. And guess what? Unlike you, I'm not going to walk away."

"I'm here aren't I?"

"It's too late for that," he said. "She doesn't need you now."

"How do you know what she wants? She's unconscious."

"So now you think you can just step in and be the good girlfriend? What about all that time before? I had to pick up the pieces of what you broke, Arizona."

"I know. And I don't know what I want. All I know is that I heard what happened and being here was all that I wanted. I might not be her girlfriend and that might not be my baby, but I want what's best for her, Sloan. Love like we have doesn't just disappear."


	3. Fighters

Arizona came back in the morning with a cup of coffee and a muffin for Mark. Clearly, Dr. Sloan wasn't her biggest fan, but she wanted him to understand that she did care. She still had feelings for Callie and, even though that baby wasn't hers, she wanted nothing more than for it to be okay.

"What are you doing?"

"You've been here all night, right?" she asked, handing his breakfast over. "Take a break. I can sit with her."

"I don't get you," he told her.

"Like you don't have exs you still care about?" she asked. "Lexie, Addison…"

She had a point. Just because she broke up with Callie didn't mean that she didn't still want the best for her. He was starting to see that now. It still made him a little upset that Arizona had hurt Callie, but he couldn't keep her away. Her intentions were good and Callie needed all the support she could get.

"Fine," he said.

"Has there been any change?"

"Baby's heart rate slowed down a little," he said. "But it's a small change, so it was most likely due to inactivity."

"It was sleeping," she nodded. "Most likely."

"Yep."

"When do Calliope's dad and Addison get here?"

"What time is it?" he asked.

"Seven," she told him.

"Addison'll be here in about an hour. And I don't know about her dad, but hopefully soon."

"Yeah."

"Do you think we made the right decision?" he asked her.

"I don't know," she said. "Honestly, it's not best in terms of Callie's chances, but she wants that baby. And if she woke up and Baby was gone…"

"Yeah," he replied.

"There is no right decision here," she said, looking at her ex, who was still lying motionless in the bed.

Derek walked in. "Any change?" he asked Mark.

"Not with her," she said. "Baby's heart rate slowed a bit, but it's not a lot."

"Oh," he replied. "I want to test her neuro function. I'm going to lower her sedation and see what response we get."

"Okay," he said, sitting back down. "I'll leave after this. I need to be here for this."

Arizona nodded, realizing that if she wanted to be a part of this whole situation, she would have to have Mark around, too.

Derek lowered the amount of medication that Callie was on and she slowly woke up. She didn't move, but they could tell by the look in her eyes that she was in a great deal of pain.

"I know," he said. "We just need to do some tests, okay?"

He didn't get much of a response, but that wasn't good enough for Mark. He knew that Callie could do these things. He wasn't ready to accept that she might not be the same person as she once was, even though that seemed pretty likely.

"Callie, Arizona's here," he told her. "Can you squeeze Arizona's hand?"

Arizona placed her hand into Callie's. "You can do this, Calliope," she said, tearing up but trying not to show it too much.

Callie squeezed. It wasn't with much pressure at all, but it was better than nothing. It meant that Callie was able to follow basic commands. It was probably the only hand function she had, however.

"Good," Mark smiled.

"I'll come back later, but for now we'll make you comfortable again, okay?" Derek asked, giving Callie more medication again.

"You'll be okay, Calliope," Arizona said. "That was a good sign."

"Callie, I'm going to go eat, but Arizona's gonna stay with you, okay?"

Her eyes moved in his direction. To be honest, he didn't know if this was a voluntary reaction or not, but he liked to think it was. Right now, he couldn't think like a doctor.

"Addison just called and she's on her way. Her plane just landed," Derek said.

"Okay, good."

* * *

><p>By the time Mark came back to Callie's room, Addison was there.<p>

"Thanks for coming," he told her.

"Of course," she nodded.

"What do you think?" Arizona asked as she watched Dr. Montgomery look over the monitors.

Addison looked from Arizona to Mark, wondering what Callie's ex was doing sitting by her bedside.

"It's fine," Mark said. "Whatever. What do you think?"

"I'm going to be completely honest because I think that's what you'd want."

"Well, yeah."

"If Callie stays like this for much longer, I don't see the pregnancy being able to continue. Sure, the baby's getting oxygen because Callie is, but the stress is what I'm worried about."

"The heart rate is okay," Mark said. "What do you -?"

"She's had a few contractions," Addison told him. "Was she yesterday?"

"No."

"I'm going to stop them for now," she said. "And I'll talk to the rest of the team and we'll come up with a plan."

"Okay."

"I'd like to get her to twenty-four weeks at least," she said. "That's four more days. Hopefully these contractions don't persist."

"Yeah," Arizona nodded.

"Let's do an ultrasound," she said. "I want to check a few things."

"Okay."

Addison lifted Callie's gown and squirted the cool gel onto her belly. She placed the wand onto it, and the image appeared on the monitor. Arizona and Mark both smiled when they saw that the baby was moving. As they watched, Baby's heart rate even rose back to what it usually was.

"You've got a little fighter in there," Arizona told Callie.

"Yep," Mark agreed.

"Movement and fluid look good," Addison said after about a minute. She was taking measurements. "She's about a pound."

"She?" Mark smiled.

"Oh, you didn't know?" she asked. "Sorry."

"I wanted to know," he said. "She didn't, but somehow I think she would be happy to know that right now."

"Statistically girls do better," Arizona said. "I mean, it's just statistics and not a hard and fast rule or anything, but still. We don't know why, but most people think it's just because girls tend to be fighters."

"She is," Mark smiled. "Just like her Madre."

"Madre?" Arizona asked.

When they had been together, it had been decided that Callie would be Madre and Arizona would be Mommy. She was a little surprised to hear that Callie was still going with that name.

"She said it just felt too weird to go by Mommy when that was supposed to be you."

"Oh."

"Alright," Addison said, forcing a smile. "I'm going to go figure out what's best here."

"If you can get her to twenty-four weeks, those four days matter right?"

"At this point, everyday does. I'd love to get her even further than that, but I don't know."

"Okay," Arizona said.

* * *

><p>Unfortunately, almost two hours later, Callie's water broke on its own. Addison's attempts to stop her labour had been unsuccessful.<p>

"Now we deliver?" Mark asked as Addison confirmed that Callie's water had indeed broken.

"The risk of infection is far too great if we don't," she said. "And the last thing Callie needs is an infection."

"Can I be in there?"

"Come," she nodded. "Page someone from Neonatal," she told a nurse.

"No, Robbins," Mark said.

"What?"

"Arizona works with preemies all the time," he said. "I know she won't stop trying if –"

"Page Dr. Robbins," Addison told the nurse.

With that, they rushed Callie in for an emergency C-Section, just hoping that the baby would be able to make it.

"We're ready when you are," Arizona told Addison as she entered the O.R. and saw that the nurses had already finished setting up all of the equipment that she would need to help save Callie's little girl.

"Scalpel," Addison said, letting a nurse hand one over.

Before anyone really had time to think, Addison had the tiny girl out and her umbilical cord was cut so that she could be whisked off to Arizona.

"C'mon, Baby Girl," Mark said, wanting to go over but knowing that Robbins and her team needed room.

What felt like hours but was really only a few minutes passed by before they all heard the wonderful announcement. "Heartbeat," Arizona said. "Good job," she softly told the miniature girl.

"Thank God," Mark quietly replied with a smile as he watched them take his daughter out of the room quickly.

"You should probably wait a few minutes," Addison said. "Just because they have a heartbeat doesn't mean there's not more to do. I know you're a doctor, but no dad should have to see that."

"What are her chances?" he asked. "Really."

"Not what I'd like them to be," she answered truthfully as she began to close Callie. "But right now, you have her. Focus on that."

"Yeah."

"Does she have a name?"

"Not yet," he said. "How sad is that? She could die and not even have a name."

"You'll think of one," Addison said.


	4. Road To Recovery

**I understand that not everyone is going to like my writing. That's fine. However, all I ask for is respect. Constructive criticism is fine, but plain disrespect is not. If you don't like my writing, nobody is making you read it. If you don't want to, don't. I want to write and I have readers who like this story, so I'm going to continue it regardless, but disrespect directed at me or anyone else is not acceptable. I never thought I'd have to post something like this, but people are getting carried away. **

**To those of you who like this story, thank you. Here's more. It's a shorter chapter, but I think it's worth it. **

* * *

><p>"Hi, Baby Girl," Arizona said as she stood over the one pound, one ounce baby a few hours after she was born.<p>

She watched the little one struggle to breathe as the machine forced air into her underdeveloped lungs. She wasn't the smallest baby that Arizona had ever cared for, but she was certainly close. It was never easy to see a baby fighting to live, however, watching Callie's child having such a hard time was especially tough.

"Can you get better?" she asked her. "You and your madre both aren't doing too good right now, but we're gonna take care of you, okay?"

Addison walked into the N.I.C.U. with Mr. Torres, who had arrived about an hour ago. "Somebody's here to meet you," she told the preemie.

"Say 'hi, Abuelo!'" Arizona smiled.

Clearly, Callie's father was overwhelmed. He had just been to see Callie, who was hooked up to all sorts of machines, and now he was meeting his granddaughter, who was smaller than he had probably ever imagined she could be. She knew he was scared for the both of them, and a little postitivy was in order. Both his daughter and granddaughter were still alive. For now, that was enough.

"How is she?" he asked.

"We got her stabilized, but since then she has had problems keeping her vitals up," Arizona said. "That's not uncommon, though."

"Oh."

"How about you just sit with her for a little while while Dr. Robbins and I talk?" Addison suggested.

"I'd love to," he smiled.

As scared and shocked as he was, he was also falling in love with his granddaughter. Her features might have been underdeveloped now, but he was trying to picture what she would look like once she grew a little more.

"She's a feisty little one," Arizona told him.

"She looks just like Calliope," he said as he sat down.

"She does," she smiled, looking down at the little one. "She's absolutely gorgeous."

With that, Arizona and Addison left the grandfather with his granddaughter.

"She's hanging in there, huh?" Addison smiled.

"She is."

"Are you okay with this?" Addison asked. "Given the fact that –"

"That it's Calliope's daughter?" she replied. "Yeah, I am. I want the best for her and that's not passing her off to some resident. I think Dr. Karev is great, but…"

She smiled. "Okay then," she said. "Just checking, but if you can handle it, that's perfect. Ideal even. I think that once Callie wakes up, she'll feel really good about having her little girl in your hands."

"I hope," she replied. "How is she?"

"They're bringing her back into surgery to finish what they started soon," she said. "Now that she's not pregnant –"

"Yeah," Arizona nodded. "I think I'm gonna go see her. Do you mind staying here for a little while?"

"Go," she told her.

* * *

><p>Arizona sat with Callie until she went into surgery and, three hours later when she got out, she was still waiting for her. Mark was in the N.I.C.U. with the baby, but Mr. Torres walked in.<p>

"I hear the surgery went well?" he asked.

"It did," Arizona nodded. "As well as it could have. That's a great sign."

"Good," he said as he sat down. "So you and Calliope…?"

"All I know is I love your daughter, Sir," she told him. "I don't know if she'll take me back, or even if she'lll wake up, but I love your daughter."

"And the baby?"

"I want the best for her," she said. "I think she's pretty awesome. I'd love to be a part of her life. Get her through this. Get them both through this."

"Works for me," he said.

Arizona saw some movement out of the corner of her eye and she realized that it was Callie waking up and trying to remove her breathing tube.

"Relax, Callie," she told her. "I'll take it out, okay?"

"Can you?" Callie's father asked.

"If she's fighting the intubation, it means she can breathe on her own."

"Oh."

Arizona put on some gloves and removed the tube. Callie started coughing as her lungs began working on their own again.

"Deep breaths," Arizona told her. "Relax. You're okay. You're better than okay."

It took a minute, but Callie caught her breath. "What -?" she forced out.

"You were in an accident," her dad told her.

"But you're doing just fine," Arizona said. "You're gonna be okay."

"Baby?" she asked.

"You're a mom," she told her. "You have the most beautiful girl, Calliope," she said, sitting back down. "She's small. Very small. But she's a tough cookie and she's perfect."

"How sm…small?"

"One pound, one ounce."

"Oh," she replied.

"Addison and I are both doing everything we can," she said.

"Thanks," she said.

"Of course," she replied.

"You've…?" she asked. "You've…?"

"I've what? Take your time," she said. "This is normal. Your brain is –"

"You've been here?"

"Not the whole time," she replied. "Sloan and I have both been going back and forth between here and the N.I.C.U."

"You've been here," she smiled.

"I have," she nodded. "I wouldn't want to be anywhere else."

"I love you," Callie said.

"I love you, too," Arizona replied without a moment's hesitation.

Callie's father smiled. "I think I'll go tell that beautiful granddaughter of mine that her madre woke up," he said.

"Take pictures," Arizona said, handing over her phone.

"Will do," he agreed.

"You really…really…" Callie asked as her dad left.

"Love you? Yep!" she smiled. "But you need rest, so I think you should quit asking questions and let me do all the talking okay?"

Callie smiled. "Tell me how much."

Arizona knew that she and Callie had a lot to do before things would be back to normal. Callie would physically and emotionally be going through a lot, and they would have to figure out how to rebuild their relationship. Right now, that didn't even matter though. Callie loved her and she loved Callie. Unlike before, she now knew that the rest of it would fall into place. She wasn't just saying it anymore. She felt it. This was the first step on the road to recovery – for Callie. the baby, and their relationship.


	5. Joys and Tragedies

Baby Girl Torres wasn't named for a week after her birth. This wasn't because her fragile life hung in the balance – to them that was all the more reason to give her a name – but because her madre spent the vast majority of that week asleep. She was on many medications which drained her of a lot of her energy.

However, they did eventually decide what their little fighter would be called. Callie liked Sofia because she felt that it was a strong, yet gorgeous name that would suit the baby perfectly. She also loved the fact that it had a Spanish spelling. Hope was chosen to be her middle name, for obvious reasons.

"That kid is amazing," Arizona smiled when she walked into Callie's room with a positive update.

"I know that much," Callie told her. "What happened now?"

"She's gained three point two ounces."

"Good!"

"What about the brain bleed?" Mark asked.

"Shepherd's keeping an eye on it, but there's been no change."

"And her PDA?" Callie asked.

"We know that she'll eventually need surgery," the blond replied. "But now isn't the time. Right now, she needs to be developing and growing. And she is."

"Pictures?"

"Here," Arizona said, showing her girlfriend pictures of the tiny girl.

Callie teared up. Of course, she love seeing daily photographs of her baby girl, but it was hard to accept that cell phone pictures and videos provided the only way for her to see her child. She knew that Sofia was too sick and little for much contact, but she longed to just set her eyes on her in person. She longed to know that her daughter could hear her voice.

"This is a good update," Mark said. "One of the best so far."

"All I want is to get to the NICU."

"Calliope, you can't sit up enough," Arizona said.

"Is there any way we could bring Sofia here?" Mark wondered. "Anyway at all?"

"It's not worth the risk," Arizona said. "We'd have to manually regulate her stats the whole time and if one little thing went wrong…"

"I can't sit up if I'm not allowed to try," Callie said.

Mark slowly started raising the head of the hospital bed, just to see if Callie's abdominal muscles were strong enough to handle the new position. He was going as slow as he possibly could, but Arizona still needed to stop him when she saw that Callie was trying to hide the pain.

"Put it back down."

"No!" Callie complained. "Of course it hurts. It's only been a week. But it doesn't matter if it hurts. What matters is –"

"You have to heal," Arizona said. "If you push yourself too much, you'll risk setbacks and be kept from her for even longer. She knows you love her, Callie. We tell her every single day. And she's got a whole hospital on her side. If there's anything she's lacking, it's not love."

"Says the person who's still holding out on her."

"I don't feel like her mom," she said. "At least not yet. But that doesn't mean I don't want the best for her. That doesn't mean that I don't think about her, even when I'm not working in the NICU. It's gonna be a long road for everybody."

"How do we get there, though?"

"I'm gonna go check on her," Mark told Callie as he got up, quickly realizing that he didn't belong in this conversation.

"Thanks," Arizona said.

"No, stay," Callie told him.

"What?"

"This is about Sofia," Callie said. "Mark gets a say. I'm not saying you don't, but we can't talk about how things are going with Sofia without him."

"Either way, I can't object," Mark said. "If Robbins isn't around, Sofia'll still be loved. If she is, the more the merrier."

"A week ago, I wasn't allowed to go anywhere near them," Arizona said.

"Not because you're a bad person, but just because –"

"Because why?"

"Can we please just stop this?" Callie asked. "Arizona makes me happy. She's also made me incredibly sad, but for the most part, I'm happy."

"Okay," Mark said. "Really. I'm going. This is more about you two than it is Sofia."

"Fine," Callie replied.

* * *

><p>"Those mommies of yours are both too stubborn to see it," Mark told Sofia as he sat with her. "You mean so much to both them. Madre's worried that you won't feel that from Mommy, and Mommy's too nervous to be your mommy. I think because she feels bad that she screwed up. But it's not like Madre's perfect. And Daddy's not. So she fits right in, doesn't she?"<p>

"How is this little lady?" Bailey asked as she walked into the NICU and over to everyone's favourite micro preemie.

"She's good, but those mamas of hers aren't so much."

"What happened?"

"Callie wants to get here so bad," Mark said. "And Arizona's struggling with suddenly being thrown back into this whole thing."

"And you?"

"Just trying to get through it all," he said. "I don't do this, Bailey. I'm the guy who screws everything up all the time. I'm not the one who fixes things."

"When it comes to Torres and Robbins, let the chips fall where they may," she said. "Stay out of that mess unless you have to be there."

"Mess?" he laughed. "I think they're good together."

"They are," she said. "But they're a mess right now."

"Everything is."

"And as for this little one, I can't really give much in the way of advice because I'm lucky enough to have a perfectly healthy kid. But no matter what happens, you're her daddy. Every girl needs a daddy who's there for her no matter what. Just keep doing what you're doing and again, just go with the flow. If I were you, I'd celebrate the joys and just do whatever you can to get through the tragedies."

"She's gaining weight."

"See?" Bailey smiled. "That's a good sign."

"But it doesn't mean much in the long run," he said. "She could still be sick for the rest of her life. She could still be disabled. She could still…"

"Yeah," she said. "But will you love her any less if she is any of those things?"

"No."

"Parents of preemies just get a crash course. They go through the joys and tragedies all at once."

As soon as she finished saying this, she looked over to see that Miss Sofia Hope was trembling. It was only a slight shake, but it might as well have been a violent convulsion, since it was probably having the same effect on her brain.

"Page Robbins," Mark said. "And Derek."

"On it," Bailey replied.


	6. To Build Something

Arizona and Derek rushed Sofia into surgery just minutes later. Even though Arizona had just said that the baby was too fragile for surgery, they didn't have much choice. If they did the surgery, they might lose her. If they didn't do the surgery, they would lose her for sure and she would suffer as well.

"Are you okay to do this?" Derek asked just before they began.

"Yeah," she said. "It's my job."

"It's also your girlfriend's baby," he replied.

"And your best friend's," she said. "Nobody's questioning your abilities, Dr. Shepherd."

"Fine," he agreed. "Let's just do this," he said as they began.

"Can we do this?" she asked.

"God, I hope so," he told her, taking a deep breath.

"Dr. Shepherd, did you need -?" Lexie asked when she came into the OR.

She was on her brother-in-law's service that day, and when she heard that he had rushed off into a surgery, she had been determined to scrub in before he gave another resident the opportunity. Of course, she didn't realize who he was operating on.

"Scrub in, Dr. Grey," he nodded.

"Is that Sofia?"

"Can you do this?" he asked her.

She nodded. "Yes, I…I can."

"We don't need the quivering, Dr. Grey," Arizona said. "Pull it together before you come assist."

"I'm okay," she said. "It's just…"

"Believe me, I know," she told her.

"Right."

"So many people who care about you are here, Sofia," Derek said. "It's gonna be okay."

Derek wasn't sure what he believed when it came to what affected a patient's outcome. He had been very negative and had positive outcomes, and he had been very positive and had negative outcomes. However, he decided that it was worth the effort. After all, the little one on his table this time was basically one of his nieces. He would do anything possible to try and achieve the best result he could.

"It is," Arizona agreed.

Dr. Stark came in. "Dr. Rob –"

"I'm not her mom," she said.

"You're with her mom."

"Which is a relationship that, even if we took it further, our state would refuse to recognize as a real marriage. Technically, I have every right to be here. Sir, I know you're my boss, but this little girl needs me."

"Dr. Shepherd, please inform Dr. Robbins that –"

Derek may have logically agreed with Dr. Stark. Maybe it wasn't the smartest move to have Arizona operating on Sofia. Yet, they had already started and Arizona was doing exactly what she needed to with perfect accuracy. He didn't know how she was keeping her cool, but she was.

"Dr. Stark, Dr. Robbins is fine," he said. "Can you go give Dr. Sloan and Dr. Torres an update?"

"I'm not an intern."

"Then we're all set here, thanks," he replied.

"Thank you," Arizona told Derek when Dr. Stark left.

"Nobody should ever mess with a determined mom," Derek smiled through his mask.

"I'm –"

"Believe what you want, but you're becoming a mom."

"I hope so," she told him. "You have no idea how badly I hope so."

"Did you know Meredith and I are adopting?" he asked.

"You are?"

"You are?" Lexie, who had just come back from scrubbing in, asked. "How did I not know about this?"

"Well, we're trying," he said. "From Africa. When you came back and had all those stories of all those kids, we realized that that was how we wanted to become parents. We've tried for a biological kid and that didn't work out. So adoption's the next step."

"Congratulations," Arizona said.

"Thanks," he said. "Anyways, one of the first questions on the first questionnaire we had to fill out just to see if adoption was right for us, it was about whether or not we understand that the bond might not be instant," he told her as they worked. "But that it's more likely to build over time."

"I know that," she told him. "But with Sofia, do we have the time?"

"Well, we're repairing this bleed," he said. "That's something."

"Yeah," Arizona said, surprised at how well it was going.

"And I think you'd better sit the next one out," he suggested. "Right now, in the middle of surgery, that wasn't the time to step back. But mom's don't do this. So if you wanna feel like a mom, let Stark be the doctor from now on."

"I don't like people telling me what to do, Dr. Shepherd. Especially when it's about Dr. Stark."

"But you know I'm right."

"Unfortunately."

"And Meredith didn't want to tell too many people," he explained to Lexie. "Anybody really. Which means only Yang knows. Adoption doesn't always work out and she didn't want to get everybody all excited."

"Well, now I'm all excited," she said. "So much for that."

"You're gonna have a friend, Sofia," Arizona said. "A cousin, I guess. So get all better so you two can play, okay?"

* * *

><p>"Why is it taking so long?" Callie asked. "It shouldn't take this long."<p>

"They're just being –" Mark began.

"Yang!" Callie called out when she saw Cristina walking by.

"You okay?" Cristina asked, coming into the room.

"Sofia's in OR three," she said. "Can you go get an update?"

"What happened?"

"Her brain bleed got worse and she had a seizure," Mark said.

"Oh," Cristina said. "I was thinking maybe they went in for her PDA."

"Not everything's cardio," Callie said. "Now go be a half decent Godmother and go get us an update."

"Half decent?" she asked. "I'm fabulous."

"Are you ever going to babysit?"

"Depends how much she wants to hear about cardio gods."

"Half decent," Callie said. "See?"

"But I will go get you that update," she promised.

"That won't be necessary," Derek said as he and Arizona walked into the room after being in the OR with Sofia for a few long hours.

"How is she?" Mark asked.

"That's the toughest kid I've ever seen," he said. "Didn't even give us any problems."

"Good."

"And Lexie's with her," Arizona said. "But I think Daddy should go, too. We need to talk."

"Right now?" Callie asked.

"Good talk," she said.

"Good, huh?" she smiled.

"It's gonna take time," she said. "But I'm trying here. To build something. So, yes. We need a good talk."

"Thank you."

"I'll be back later," Mark told them as he left.

"Tell her we love her."

"She knows," he smiled. "But I will."


	7. Mommy

"I love you," Arizona said, nervously pacing in front of Callie's hospital bed because the next few sentences out of her mouth were slightly terrifying to her and she hoped that her girlfriend could understand where she was coming from.

"I know," she said. "I love you, too."

"And I never thought I'd have kids," she added.

"I know. But then –"

"But after the shooting, that changed. I know. I'm getting to that."

"Sorry," she said. "The pacing's freaking me out, Arizona."

Arizona sat down. "Sorry," she said before she kept talking. "It's just…this isn't how I expected it. I thought we'd adopt some cute little kid when we came back from Africa. Or at least use an actual sperm donor. I didn't think Mark would be a part of this. And I know you didn't either, but I don't wanna be the third wheel in Sofia's life. I'm not saying I want to keep Mark away. That's not fair, either. But I'm just…terrified."

"Sofia'll love you," Callie said. "I'm pretty sure she already does, with the saving her life multiple times and all that."

"I don't want to fall in love with that little girl if she's not gonna see me as her real parent. If I'm gonna be on the outside…I don't want that."

"Well," Callie said. "Obviously, I don't know how she'll view you. At this point, we can't even say for sure that she'll make it."

"She will," Arizona said. "I'm not saying that as her doctor. Medically, I know that that could happen. But that little girl's got so much to live for. She'll make it. She's tough."

"In that case," Callie replied. "I don't think she'll really think much of it. It'll be all she knows – having two moms and a dad. Obviously when she gets older, she'll see the difference, but by then, you'll be her mommy and she'll feel that. I hope. I mean, is being a mom important because of giving birth or because of everything else a mom does?"

"Yeah," Arizona said.

"And I can't be doing any of that right now, so she's pretty lucky she has two of us."

"We make a good team," Arizona smiled.

"We do," Callie agreed. "And we'll talk to Mark because we all have to be on the same page here. And I think, for Sofia, Mark'll be okay with that."

"Good," she said. "And as much as I hate it, I think Stark needs to take over."

Callie cringed, but saw Arizona's point.

"I know," she replied. "But if I'm gonna be Mommy, I can't. Even though, legally, I could."

"Yeah," she said. "Great. Now that you're not thinking like a doctor, you can get me down to the NICU?"

"Sorry," she said, giving her a kiss. "But I can go get some pictures if you want."

"If I want?"

"She looks even worse than before," she said. "She's not in good shape right now."

"Pictures," Callie ordered.

"You got it," Arizona smiled.

* * *

><p>"You did good today," Mark was telling Sofia when Arizona came into the NICU. "You had a pretty big surgery for such a little baby and you came out okay. Good job!"<p>

"We're so happy, Sofia," Arizona added.

Mark looked up, noticing the blond who had just walked over. "Oh, look who's here," he smiled.

"It's Mommy," Arizona said. "I know you and I still have to get to know each other a lot better, but I love your madre and I told her we'd have ten kids, and now here you are! So I'm here, too. Is that okay with you?"

"Ten?" Mark asked.

"So I might have gotten a little too ambitious," she admitted. "Let's just stick to one perfect Sofia right now, huh? Get you all better."

"Good plan," Mark said. "I'll give you two a minute."

"Daddy can stay, too," Arizona said. "Right, Sofia? You just had surgery. You need everybody you can get to be here with you."

"Okay," Mark said. "You sure?"

"Like it or not, we're stuck with each other," she said in a teasing tone, hoping to break through the tension that may still have been there.

"I guess so," he smiled. "Good."

"You mean that?"

"Callie is my best friend and I want her to be happy," he said. "So, yeah. I mean that. I also want to be in Sofia's life, but we'll work it out."

Sofia moved her little leg. It wasn't much, but this movement was a good sign. She had just had neurosurgery, so it was encouraging to see that she still had the ability to use her limbs.

"She agrees," Mommy teased.

"Why the change of heart?"

"Uncle Derek said some stuff," she said. "And it's gonna take time, but if I don't try than it's not gonna work."

"Right."

"Madre wants new pictures of you, Sweet Girl," Arizona said.

"Daddy'll take some," Mark offered, pulling out his phone. "Of Sofia and Mommy."

"Perfect," she said. "And later, Mommy'll email Grandma. She's gonna be pretty surprised to hear that she's a grandma, but I think she'll grow to love you, too. She's always wanted grandbabies."

"That'll be one hell of an email to read with the morning coffee," Mark laughed.

"Yeah," Arizona smiled. "That's for sure."

* * *

><p>Arizona spent a large part of the rest of that day focused on Sofia; Callie insisted on it, actually. She was fine. She could find ways to entertain herself. It was Sofia that needed company.<p>

Mommy even went and found a few children's books and started reading them to Sofia, figuring that that was a motherly activity she could do right now, since so many other things weren't possible.

"Maybe we can record Madre reading this to you, huh?" she asked. "That way you can hear her voice."

"Don't you think Dr. Torres has other things to focus on?" Dr. Stark commented as he came over.

"Above her child?" Arizona asked. "No, not really. Yes, she has to recover, but she can't see her own baby. Her very, very sick baby. So, no. I don't think she has more important things to do."

Dr. Stark ignored Arizona's reply and began his examination of Sofia. "Her stats are holding, huh?"

"She's had a few apneas and a bradycardia or two here and there, but all things considered, she's doing great."

"Has Dr. Shepherd ordered any scans?" he asked. "Since the bleed?"

"Dr. Shepherd doesn't feel like we're really going to see much right now. We know the bleed is repaired because Dr. Shepherd is skilled enough to be able to tell. Now we need to give her brain time to heal."

"If Dr. Shepherd feels that's best," he said as he walked away.

"Okay, so that guy might be a meany," Arizona whispered to Sofia. "But don't worry. Mommy, Daddy, and Madre are gonna make sure he still takes good care of you."

"You just love hearing yourself say it, don't you?" Derek asked as he walked in.

He was there to check on his patient, of course, but he trusted Arizona's judgment. He was moreso there just to visit right now.

"What?"

"Mommy."

"Yeah," she said. "I figure the more I say it, one day it'll stop feeling forced and I'll actually be her mom."

"Yeah."


	8. Take The Good With The Bad

"Thirty ounces," the nurse who was weighing Sofia announced two weeks later.

"Almost two pounds," Daddy said. "So close! Next time, huh Little Goose?"

He, Callie, and Arizona had already learned a lot about turning negatives into positives. It was one of the only ways they were going to get themselves and Sofia through this hard time. Really, Daddy had been hoping to get to proudly announce that his three week old had, in fact, broken past the two pound mark. Instead, he had to celebrate the fact that she was still two ounces off, but she had still gained weight.

"She had a rough night last night," the nurse reported. "But this morning, she's been better."

"I know," she said. "Her mom told me."

"Oh, okay."

"Speaking of moms," he said, looking down at Sofia Hope. "Guess who's coming to visit you soon? Your Madre finally gets to see you!"

"That'll be fun, won't it?" the nurse asked.

"She's so excited, Sof."

"Do you wanna help me wash her up, Dad?" the nurse asked him.

"Sure," Mark said.

He understood why they asked; some parents of preemies were just too nervous to participate in the care of their fragile little ones, but Mark wanted to be as hands-on as he could. Considering Sofia was three weeks old and she had yet to be stable enough to be held, there wasn't much else they could really do for her. Helping wipe her down with a damp cloth was actually one of the biggest ways to bond with her.

Sofia put her tiny arm up in protest as soon as they started.

"I know!" the nurse replied. "We'll be quick, okay?"

"Don't you wanna get all clean for when Madre comes?" Mark asked. "Not so much, huh? I know. You don't like being messed with, do you?"

"Dr. Shepherd came this morning to get some new scans done and she wasn't happy with him," the nurse told Daddy. "Her BP went up and she was actually pretty feisty for a baby that tiny."

"Why were you mad at Uncle Derek?" Mark asked. "He loves you! But at least we know you can get that BP up."

"Yeah," the nurse smiled.

"I didn't know Dr. Shepherd did more scans," he said. "Did they show anything?"

"He said he'd talk to you later," the nurse said. "I'm not sure."

"Oh."

He was hoping he was wrong, but he had a feeling that the scans had shown something. If they had been clear, Uncle Derek would have probably declared that as soon as possible and he hadn't. Again, Mark reminded himself to live in the moment.

* * *

><p>"Now you rest," Arizona said, wheeling Callie back into her room after a physio session. "And when you wake up, we'll go see Sofia."<p>

"Forget the rest," Callie replied. "Let's just go."

"Callie, physio takes –"

"A lot out of me," she nodded. "I know. But so does being away from my kid. I've been away from her for three weeks. I don't want to wait a couple hours. I want to see her now."

"And I get that."

"No, you don't," she said. "You get to go see her. You haven't been kept from her for three weeks."

"What I'm trying to say is that it's your job to focus on her, but it's my job to focus on both of you. If you wear yourself out, it won't help anyone."

"I'm not running a marathon," she said. "I'm asking you to wheel me down to the NICU so that I can sit and talk to my girl."

Arizona tried to stand her ground, knowing that Callie really did need rest. She could see the exhaustion on her girlfriend's face. However, she knew she wasn't going to win this one. Callie was going to get to the NICU now, one way or another.

"Fine," she smiled. "Let's go see our girl."

"Our girl," she smiled. "I love hearing you say that."

"Yeah," Arizona replied.

"How's it going? You with her?"

"We've been reading tons of books," she said. "I still think she likes the recorded versions you did for her better, but still. Dr. Seuss is a hit."

"It is, huh?" Callie asked as Arizona wheeled her out of the room and town the hallway.

"She's all about 'Green Eggs and Ham,'" Arizona said. "I can tell."

"How exactly?" she laughed.

"I just can," Mommy insisted.

"Good," Callie replied.

"Where are you going?" Bailey asked, stopping them in the hall. "I just saw the physio and he said –"

"He said I was going to rest," Callie said. "But he does not have a little girl in the NICU. So he loses," Callie replied. "I'm fine."

"Nothing crazy," she said.

"I'm barely mobile," she laughed.

"I know," she said. "How's Sofia doing?"

"Good," Arizona smiled. "That kid's perfect."

"Not that you're biased at all, right?" she teased.

"Not at all," Callie said. "It's just a fact."

Bailey smiled. "All right," she said as her pager went off. "I've gotta go. Have a good visit."

"Oh, we will," Callie smiled.

* * *

><p>They were just finishing up Sofia's "bath" when Callie and Arizona arrived.<p>

"Oh, Madre and Mommy are early," Mark smiled. "Say 'I just got a bath!'"

"Did you?" Arizona asked, wheeling Callie up to the side of the incubator. "Look who came with me today!"

"Hi, Sofia! I'm Madre," Callie smiled.

Surprising even herself, Callie didn't find her reaction to seeing her very sick girl to be what she thought it would be. She thought she would feel overwhelmed and sad to see her daughter that way. Of course this did sadden her, but she was mostly just happy to finally be able to sit with Sofia. She was able to see past all of the tubes and monitors and just see Sofia Hope, the gorgeous girl she had been waiting all this time to meet.

"She knows who you are," Mark said. "Right, Sof?"

"How is she today?" Arizona wondered.

"Almost two pounds," he said. "Just two ounces shy."

"Good girl," Callie whispered, reaching up to put her hand inside the incubator.

She was still having trouble straightening her fingers out, but she was determined to touch Sofia. The contact would do them both so much good.

"You got it?" her girlfriend asked.

"Yep," Callie said, slowly able to extend just two fingers. "I've been working hard to get better and so have you, huh?"

"She has," Mark nodded.

"I love you so much, Sofia," Callie said. "Did you know that? A lot of people love you, don't they?"

"She's pretty lucky like that," Arizona smiled.

"And hopefully soon you'll be big enough and strong enough to hold," she said. "I've been working on being able to hold you, you know."

"Soon," Mark said. "Right?"

Sofia opened her eyes. "Hello!" Callie smiled. "Look at those pretty eyes!"

"They look just like Madre's," Arizona said.

Sofia closed her eyes. "Oh, now you need to close them again? You just wanted to peak at us? Okay."

"Oh, Uncle Derek's here, too," Mark replied as Derek walked in.

"Is this your first time here?" he asked Callie as he picked up Sofia's chart.

"Yep," Callie nodded.

"I'll come back," he told them all. "You just enjoy her."

"Okay," Arizona smiled.

"Derek, what is it?" Mark asked.

"What's what?" Callie questioned. "What are you -?"

"He had some new scans done today," Mark told them.

"And…?" Arizona asked.

"Are you sure you -?" Derek started to ask.

"Clearly everything's not fine," Callie said, looking back at her daughter. "What is it?"

"The brain bleed did more damage than we hoped it would," he said.

"Which means what exactly?"

"It means she has some permanent damage," he said. "That's really all we know at this point."

"Cerebral Palsy," Arizona replied.

"Yes."

"But you can't predict how severe?" Mark asked, not really feeling like they were talking about his own baby.

"No," Derek said. "At least not this early. Most babies aren't even diagnosed until –"

"Yeah," Callie said. "We only know because the scan showed it."

It didn't feel real for any of them. They felt like they were talking about the prognosis of any other patient.

"Exactly," he said. "But we have to wait and see what she'll be capable of. I don't want to give you a guess and then be wrong. Cerebral Palsy is different in every single case. No two people with CP are exactly the same. Some cases are very severe, and some cases are so mild that it's hard to tell the person even has it."

"But it could affect her ability to walk? Talk?" Mark asked. "Possibly even feed herself?"

"It could," he nodded, knowing that his best friend obviously already knew this, but he needed it confirmed so that it would begin to feel real. "I wish I could tell you exactly what her future holds. I can't, though. Not this soon."

"Yeah."

"I'll leave you alone," he said, closing the chart. "If you need anything, you know where to find me."

"Thanks," he replied.

"So," Callie said as Derek walked away. "What now?"

As surgeons, it was in their nature to find a fix and to take action. Only, there was no fix and it was already bothering the new mom.

"Now we love her," Mark said. "We figure it out as we go. We take the good with the bad. We have her and she's doing well otherwise. Three weeks ago, we couldn't say that much."

"Of course we love you," Callie told the baby. "Right?"

"I'll be back," Arizona said, obviously forcing a smile. "Okay?"

Callie began crying as Arizona walked away.

"She just didn't want to lose it in front of –" Mark said.

He was feeling the same way. As the head of this unique family, he felt like he had to keep it together.

"She didn't want this," Callie said. "She was scared to have kids because things happen to them. And now we have a disabled kid."

"Not too many people hope for a disabled baby," Mark said. "But she loves her. I know she does. She's been here trying to bond with her a lot. She's been doing everything she can. She knew this was possible. I don't think this'll make her run."

"I hope not."

"She's the same kid, Callie. Brain damage or not."

"I know that," Callie said, trying to smile through the tears.

Of course, she was devastated to hear that Sofia would face challenges. She had been hoping to take home a perfectly healed little girl, and that wasn't going to happen. Yet, that didn't mean Sofia was any less perfect in her eyes. Mark was right.

"And so does Mom," Mark said. "We can do this, Callie. We don't have a choice."

"She does."

"Not according to her heart," Mark said. "Callie, she's Mommy. Sofia's sucked her in for life."

"Have you?" Callie asked the little girl. "Daddy might be right. It's hard not to love Sofia. We love you a lot, don't we?"

"We do."

He was sure that they would all have hard moments ahead, but for now, that was his mindset. Sofia was his baby girl and they'd figure out the rest of it later.

* * *

><p><strong>Edited to add:<strong>

**Just a clarification on something from this chapter. The reference to Mark as "head of the family" was not meant to make him superior to Callie or Arizona. All that was meant by that is that Mark feels like Callie, Arizona, and Sofia are all struggling and he needs to help all of them (Arizona included) through it. He cares about them.  
><strong>

**Mark is in this fic because he is Sofia's dad. This is a Calzona fic and even he is supportive of them as a couple. I personally don't feel like it would make sense not to have him in this fic. I love Calzona and Mark all equally, but I can totally understand why some people don't. I respect that.**

**I don't understand why people review stories simply to be rude. I will not take this fic down, because I enjoy writing it. Again, if this fic isn't your thing, I get that. If you don't like it, feel free to stop. I do not take the opinions of disrespectful readers into account the same way I do the people who are constructive with their approach.  
><strong>

**To those of you who enjoy this fic, and even those who have given constructive critisism, thank you. More is coming soon :)  
><strong>


	9. Support Systems

"I never wanted to hear a child call me Mommy," Arizona was saying as she cried on the phone to her own mom. "And now that she might not ever…I'd give anything."

"I don't really know what to say," Barbara Robbins replied honestly on the other end.

It hadn't been long at all – just a couple weeks – since Arizona had told them that they were grandparents. They hadn't even met Baby Sofia yet. Now they were being told that she had a disability. It was a lot to take in, and Arizona's mother was pretty sure she only felt a small fraction of the emotion that her daughter was dealing with.

"I know," she said. "I just…I couldn't think of anything else to do. I can't make her better and I don't want Calliope to see me like this."

"Being upset over this isn't a bad thing for Calliope to see," she said. "Of course you're upset. You're a mom whose baby will have some difficulties. But so is Calliope."

"So I need to get back in there," she said, realizing her mom was completely correct and wondering why she had ever thought otherwise.

"Yes, you do," she said. "And your father and I need to make plans to come meet our grandbaby."

"Mom, she's still not even able to be held. Wait a bit. Just until she's home from the hospital. And actually, a little while after that. She'll be very susceptible to germs and airplanes have so many germs."

"Right now, she's in a hospital. I hate to break it to you, Arizona, but hospitals have germs, too."

"The NICU is…"

"I'll pick up some hand sanitizer right after we get off the plane," she promised. "And it doesn't matter if we can't hold her. We can still be there. We should be. It's what grandparents do."

Arizona smiled. When Timothy died, so did the Robbins' hopes of having grandchildren. They knew and respected the fact that Arizona hadn't wanted to be a mom, so they weren't expecting to get to enjoy this phase of life. Arizona was glad that things had changed and she was able to let her parents experience this.

She also realized that her mother was right. The best of grandparents didn't care what was going on in their grandchildren's lives. They wanted to be there, as present as possible, for it all. Sofia's NICU days were the first part of her life; they may not have been perfect days, but they were days that grandmas and grandpas should be a part of.

"Okay, Grandma," she agreed. "Let me know when you've booked a flight."

"Will do," she smiled. "Call me if you need anything, okay?"

"Thanks, Mom."

As Arizona ended the call, she saw Mark and Callie headed her way.

"I was just –" she started to tell them.

"I'm gonna go back to my room," Callie said. "I'm exhausted."

"Okay."

"Altman came in to check on Sofia and when we told her, she offered to sit with her for a little while. That way you two can have some time, and so can I," Mark said. "But Sofia's got company."

"Good," Arizona smiled.

"I'm hoping that when I wake up, I'll realize this was all a dream," Callie said. "All of it."

"I think we all hope that," Arizona said. "But as much as we want that, it's not. Which is okay because Sofia's still the perfect little girl."

"Yeah," Mark nodded.

"That was my mom I was talking to on the phone," Arizona said. "My parents are flying out here to meet her. And well, you, too."

"When?" her girlfriend wondered.

"I don't know yet."

"But you told them?"

"Yep," she said.

"I have no idea how I'm gonna make that call."

"Callie, your dad's not gonna love her any less because she's disabled," Arizona said. "He's just happy she's here."

"I'm not worried about that," she said. "I just don't know how to get those words to actually come out of my mouth."

"Yeah," she said. "That part pretty much sucks."

"But you don't have to do it right now," Mark replied, seeing how worn out Callie was. "Get some rest."

"I know," she told him. "I will."

"Good."

"Where are you going?" Arizona asked.

"I have no idea," he said. "I just need to get out of here for a bit."

"Yeah," she replied.

"But if you need me, call me."

"We will," Callie promised.

With that, Arizona took her girlfriend back to her room.

"Mark!" he heard Lexie call out suddenly.

He turned. "Lex –"

"I know you're not working," she said. "I know. But that new plastics guy just asked me a question and I don't know the answer. Which, because I have a photographic memory, means I've never heard of the condition. And he doesn't care too much about teaching, so could you -?"

"Not right now, okay?" he told her.

"What's wrong?" she asked. "Is it Sofia?"

He cleared his throat and forced out the words. "She has Cerebral Palsy."

"Oh," she said. "Now I feel like an idiot. I'm so sorry."

"Don't say that," he told her. "Don't be sorry. She's not dead. In fact, otherwise, she's doing well considering everything."

"Well good," she said. "And I didn't mean to pity you. It's just one of those situations where you don't really know what you're supposed to say. You know?"

"Yep," he nodded.

"You okay? Need anything?"

"A couple drinks would be nice," he said. "But I don't want to be that guy. I don't want to go get drunk because if something happens and I…"

"Yeah," she said. "You know what? Let me go ask somebody else to fill in for me. Kepner's been begging for plastics."

"Kepner? Plastics?" he laughed. "And you're giving up a surgery? Why?"

"You could use a friend," she said. "Derek just went into OR 3, Callie's…so you're left with me."

"Is that how it works?"

"Look, we might not be…us anymore," she said. "But I don't wanna see you like this."

"Thanks."

* * *

><p>"So, what's your mom like?" she asked as she laid down. "And your dad? I know I've heard stories about them, but tell me more."<p>

"You wanna hear about my parents?" she asked. "Right now?"

"It's better than sitting here crying," she yawned as Arizona got in bed beside her.

"Well, my mom is so…I think I'm a lot like her," she said.

"So she's amazing?"

"You could say that," she laughed. "Yes. Let's go with amazing. And my dad tries to be this tough guy. You know, the whole military man thing. And he is. Completely. But at the same time, he can be so gentle and kind. Sofia's gonna have him wrapped around her little finger in about four seconds."

"Good," she smiled.

"And they'll love you," she said. "I know it. You're just the kind of woman they want to see me with."

"That's a plus," she laughed.

"I told my mom and she insisted on coming out here to meet her right away," Arizona said. "They're thinking just like we are. CP or not, that kid's the most loved baby ever."

"Pretty much."

"I've treated a lot of kids with CP," she said. "Most of them are pretty happy, otherwise healthy kids."

"I know that," she said. "So have I."

"Sofia's going to have the best life we can possibly give her."

"Yeah."

"And, personally, I think being a little bit different can also be a little bit cool," she smiled. "Makes her unique. Nobody wants a boring kid."

Callie laughed.


	10. Happy Mother's Day

It was the day before Mother's day and Sofia's mommies and her daddy got some great news. Not only would Grandma and Grandpa be arriving tomorrow afternoon, but today was the day they had been waiting for. They had finally been told that it was okay for them to hold five-and-a-half week old Sofia. She now weighed two pounds, five point two ounces and she was doing well considering everything she had been through.

"Are you ready, Sof?" Arizona asked as she slowly began to take her daughter out of the incubator, careful not to get any of the tubes or wires tangled.

She placed her in Callie's arms. Even though the new mom's motor function still wasn't perfect, she could sort of cradle Sofia against her own body in a kangaroo hold.

"Hello!" Callie smiled. "This is good, right?" she asked. "We finally get to cuddle, Sofia! I've been waiting for this for a long, long time."

Sofia opened her eyes. "You've never seen us so up close have you?" Mark asked, taking a picture. "What do you think of bein' out of the incubator? Pretty cool, isn't it?"

This moment was just as good for her parents as it was for Sofia. As Arizona watched Callie holding their baby girl after so long, she saw the relief on her girlfriend's face. Of course, their tiny girl had a long way to go, but this was the first really normal thing that they could do with her. She was getting bigger and it was great progress.

"Hopefully it's not too long before we get to go home, right?" Callie asked the little girl. "You have to get bigger, breathe better, drink from a bottle, all those things. And as soon as you can do that, you're out of here."

"Madre might be getting just a little ahead of herself," Arizona smiled.

Most premature babies went home around their due date, meaning that, if this was the case for Sofia, she would be spending another eleven weeks in the hospital. This was only a rough estimate, but it was likely that their daughter would be spending a considerable amount of time in the NICU still.

"I know," Callie said. "But still."

"Yeah."

Callie held Sofia for awhile, but she eventually did pass her over to Arizona. They weren't sure how long the baby could handle being out of the incubator for, and all three parents wanted to hold her. Therefore, the amount of time each parent had to hold her had to be somewhat limited.

Sofia's little eyes opened again. "You just wanna look at everybody, don't you?" Arizona asked.

Just then, Teddy walked in. "Oh, I'll come back," she said. "I was just going to check on her PDA, but I'll do it later."

"Do you think she's strong enough to do the surgery now?" Mark asked.

"Probably not just yet," she answered. "But I've been keeping an eye on it."

"You're in such good hands, aren't you?" Arizona asked the baby girl.

"Is this the first time you've held her?" Teddy smiled.

"Yep!"

* * *

><p>Teddy checked on Sofia's PDA later that day and found that the surgery could wait. The repair was still necessary, but it could wait a few weeks. Teddy also explained that, once the surgery was done, Sofia would probably start doing much better. The only reason she didn't want to do it immediately was because of the risks involved. She wanted Sofia to be as big and strong as possible first. Luckily, major complications that would force them to operate now had not happened.<p>

The next day, their first Mother's day, Callie and Arizona decided to try not to think about disabilities, surgeries, and medical problems. For today, all they wanted to focus on was celebrating the fact that, against all odds, Sofia had survived and they were her mommies.

"Happy Mother's day," Arizona smiled as Callie woke up.

"Happy Mother's day," she replied. "Have you been to the NICU yet?"

"She had a good night," she nodded.

"Good."

When they got to the NICU that morning, they found two Mother's day cards sitting on top of her incubator. Mark had put them there for them.

"Did you get us cards?" Callie asked Sofia. "Thank you!"

"Later you get to meet Grandma and Grandpa," Arizona told Sofia. "They're Mommy's mommy and daddy."

"That'll be special, right?" Callie asked. "Do they know we can hold her?"

"I'm keeping that a surprise," Arizona said. "They'll be so excited, Sof."

* * *

><p>"So how's it feel, Grandma?" Arizona asked as she recorded the first moment that her mom was holding her daughter that afternoon.<p>

"Great," Barbara Robbins smiled. "You're so beautiful, Sofia Hope!"

"She's smaller than I thought she'd be," Arizona's dad said. "It's hard to imagine what somebody who is less than two pounds'll look like."

"Yeah," Callie said. "And she's gained twenty ounces since she was born."

"You're doing so good, huh?" Grandma asked.

"How much longer will she be here?" Daniel asked his daughter.

"Our best guess is about three months," she said.

"Which seems like forever," Callie added. "And it's already been so long."

"Yeah," he nodded.

"But it's best for you to be here," Arizona told the baby.

"Uh huh," Callie agreed.

Mark, who had taken a shift today in order to give Sofia's moms some time alone with her, came in for a visit when he had a chance.

"How is she today?" he asked.

"Apneas and bradycardias as usual," Callie said. "But not as many today."

"Good."

"This is Mark," Arizona told her parents.

"Nice to meet you," Mark said.

"Nice to meet you, too," Barbara smiled.

Of course, the Robbins' were not his biggest fans. However, he was their granddaughter's father and, from what they heard, he was a good dad. That was the most important thing.

"You're having a good day, Sofia?" Daddy asked.

"She's slowly getting better," Arizona added.

"Yep," Daddy smiled.

"When will you know more about her Cerebral Palsy?" Grandma asked.

She was still trying to understand what Sofia's disability meant. Her daughter may have had a medical background, but she didn't. This was all new to her.

"Just as she grows," Arizona explained. "We expect her to be delayed because she's a preemie, but if she doesn't really 'catch up' we'll know what her delays really are."

"Oh."

"It's frustrating not knowing," Callie said. "Not that it matters what she can and can't do, but we just want to be able to get her the help she needs."

"Which could be…?" Daniel asked.

"She could have fine and gross motor problems, speech difficulties, learning delays, a lot of different things."

"Oh."

"But we'll just have to wait and see, right Sofia?" Grandma asked. "And then your mommies and your daddy'll help you as much as they can."

"We will," Arizona agreed. "Yeah."


	11. Second Surgery

Sofia had her surgery thirteen days later. Seeing their little girl head into the OR was one of the scariest things that her parents had to face. Especially given her extremely small size – now two pounds, twelve ounces – there were significant risks.

"How do people do this?" Callie asked, trying to keep her mind busy as they waited the hours that the surgery would take. "We expect people to just wait for news, but this is impossible!"

"I'm gonna go get an update," Arizona said.

"Okay," Callie replied.

"Good," Mark added.

But as Arizona made her way closer to the OR, she realized that Alex Karev was guarding the door. "Did they really make you stand her to keep me out?"

"I'd rather be doing something else, too," he said. "But since you're not working right now, Stark has the ability to make or break my Peds. career. And Altman backed him up because she likes you and she's not taking chances with your kid."

"Which is great," Arizona said. "But enough of that. Let me in, Karev."

"Do you really wanna be in there?"

"I've operated on her before," she pointed out.

"Before you were actually her mom."

"I'm still capable of thinking like a doctor, Alex," she said.

"I'll get an update," he said. "But don't go in there. Promise? Stark already hates me enough."

"Let me in there and I'll make your career."

"How? Fellowship applications have to be in soon and you're not working," he said. "Stark calls the shots and you know it."

"I still have a say."

"But –"

"My girlfriend happened to ace her boards," Arizona said. "I'm sure she still has some study sheets or something laying around that could magically become yours."

He stepped aside. "Just don't tell Stark I caved."

Arizona entered the OR. "How is she?" she asked.

"You're not –" Teddy began.

"How is she?"

"Her BPs been all over the place," Teddy said. "That's why it's taken longer. And we've had to transfuse her, too."

"So not good."

"No," Dr. Stark said. "Which is why moms aren't allowed in –"

"We're almost done, though," Teddy said.

"Good," Arizona replied.

* * *

><p>It was still an hour before Sofia was out of the OR and ready for visitors again. Even though Sofia was so little and still unable to express much, they could tell that she was uncomfortable.<p>

"Today's been a pretty bad day, huh?" Callie asked. "I know. The worst part is all done, though. You're better now and now you can get even bigger and stronger."

"Uh huh," Daddy agreed. "Seven-and-a-half weeks old and you've already made it through two surgeries. You're pretty tough, you know."

"Yep," Arizona smiled.

"Can you call my dad?" Callie asked Arizona. "I promised I would as soon as she was out of surgery."

"Yeah," Arizona said. "I will."

"Thanks."

"You need to go back to your room, don't you?"

The long day of waiting and stress had taken its toll on Callie, who was still recovering herself. As much as she wanted – and needed – to be with Sofia, her body was telling her otherwise.

"I'm fine," she tried to convince her.

"Robbins and I'll stay here," Mark said. "You go relax."

"And I'll call your dad," Arizona added. "And my parents."

"We spent the whole day waiting for her to get out and now that she is, I really should stay."

"You really need to take it easy," her girlfriend told her. "You've seen her, you know she's okay, now let Dad and I handle pulling the all-nighter."

"Promise you'll stay with her?" Callie asked. "I don't need you. I mean, I want you, but I'm okay. She needs you guys."

"Promise," Arizona said. "I'm gonna go make my phone calls and then I'll be here all night."

"And you'll wake me up if anything changes?"

"Callie –" Mark replied.

"And you'll wake me up if anything changes, right?" she asked again.

"And we'll wake you up if anything changes."

"You're a horrible liar."

"Am not," he denied.

"Sofia Hope, tell Madre you'll be fine," Arizona told her daughter.

"There could be complications," Callie said.

"Callie, we'll handle it," Mark told her.

"And yes," Arizona said. "We'll come tell you if something happens."

Arizona didn't want to do this, but she knew that Callie wouldn't relax until they sincerely agreed.

"Thank you," she smiled.

"Happy now?"

"Yes."

"Excellent. Let's get you to your room."

"I'll see you later, 'kay Sofia?" Callie told the baby. "I love you!"

"Say 'buh bye, Madre!'" Arizona smiled.

* * *

><p>That night and the next few days were a little rough for Sofia, but as she started recovering she began to thrive. Her heart was still underdeveloped, but the number of bradycardias she was having decreased. Her colour and blood pressure also improved.<p>

"You're doing so good!" Arizona told her a week later.

They had just been told that they could try giving her a bottle for the first time now that she was more stable since her surgery. Learning to suck from a bottle would still be a challenge, but it could be done now.

"What's on the menu, Sof?" Mark asked as he brought the bottle to her mouth. "Some formula?"

"Make sure you don't feed her too fast," Callie said.

"I know," he replied. "We'll take it nice and slow, huh?"

Due to her prematurity, Sofia lacked many of the basic reflexes that babies were born with. Instead of naturally knowing how to suck, breathe, and swallow, she would have to learn this over time. Her disability also had the potential to affect this.

Sofia's eyes widened as she got her first taste of the formula. "Is that some good stuff?" Daddy asked. "Swallow, Sofia."

"This whole bottle thing might take awhile," Callie said.

"She'll get it," Arizona replied.

"I know."

"And for now, she's getting nutrition through the feeding tube," Mark added. "Anything she gets by mouth is a bonus."

"Yeah."

"You've got time to figure this out," he told her as he removed the bottle's nipple from her mouth.

Eventually, she swallowed.

"Good," Callie smiled. "That's better, right?"


	12. It's About Time

"You ready to bring our girl home today?" Arizona asked as she handed Callie a cup of coffee six weeks later.

Madre had been home for a week, but Sofia was just now ready to go home after almost three-and-a-half months in the NICU.

"More than ready," Callie smiled.

The last week had been really hard on Callie. While it felt great to be home, she hated it at the same time because she had had to leave Sofia behind. Of course, they visited a lot, but until Sofia was home, they wouldn't be able to feel at peace.

"Me too," she smiled. "It's been a long few months."

"That's the understatement of the year."

"But today, she comes home," Arizona said. "And I know that's not the end of the hard times with her, but it's a start and we'll work out the rest later."

"You're awesome," Callie smiled. "You could've just given up and decided this was way too much for you."

"I could have," she said. "And believe me, I tried to. But this is how it's supposed to be. Obviously."

"Well, we're lucky to have you."

Arizona kissed her. "Now," she said. "The faster we eat, the faster we can get there to take Sofia home."

"Not necessarily. We have to wait for the carseat test and all of that."

"Shh…" Arizona said. "Don't ruin it."

Callie laughed.

* * *

><p>It turned out that Sofia was doing her carseat test while her moms were still eating. "Ten minutes and we get to get her out of here," Mark announced when they arrived.<p>

"Yay!" Arizona smiled. "Exciting, huh?"

"So she's done okay?" Callie asked.

Dr. Stark was releasing Sofia a couple weeks early because Arizona had practically begged him to do so and told him that she would be in excellent hands with three doctors as her parents. However, she still had to pass the carseat test and Callie was a little nervous because she wasn't convinced that Sofia could pass.

"Yep," Mark said.

"Good," Arizona smiled.

"Did Stark weigh her?" Callie asked.

"She's four pounds, three ounces," he nodded.

"So big now!" Arizona smiled.

Sofia started fussing and extended her little balled up fists up to her face. "Just a few more minutes, okay?" Callie asked her. "It's okay!"

"Sofia…!" Mommy softly said. "You're okay, Pretty Girl."

"Don't scratch yourself," Callie said.

"She won't," Arizona said. "She probably won't unclench her fists."

They were beginning to notice the high muscle tone their tiny girl had due to her Cerebral Palsy.

"True."

Callie dug into the bag that they had brought with them and pulled out a pacifier. "Here," she said, as she put it into Sofia's mouth. "We can't take you out, but we can give you this, right?"

"So other than this, she's got the all clear?" Arizona asked, thinking that there had to be a catch since they weren't used to things going so easily with their daughter.

"Yep. Weight and length are good, heart's good, eyes and hearing were checked and are fine…" Daddy smiled.

"Did you know you're our miracle baby?" Callie asked her.

"She'll go home with an apnea monitor and oxygen for when she sleeps, but other than that, she's good."

"Yeah," Arizona replied.

When the full hour was up, Callie took Sofia out of the carseat. "Is that better?" she asked her. "You need a new diaper, huh? And we'll put your dress on to go home. Grandma made it just the perfect size to fit you and it's so pretty! How do you feel about white and pink?"

"She'll love it, right?" Arizona asked, taking a picture.

* * *

><p>"What do you think of it?" Arizona asked as they gave their little one the grand tour of her nursery when they got home. "Welcome home, Sofia."<p>

Her moms had had to compromise when it came to its design. The walls were a pastel yellow – Mommy's choice – with big, brightly coloured flowers painted on them – which was Madre's decision. Her name was proudly displayed over the crib.

"Do you love it?" Callie smiled, giving her cheek a kiss. "You're actually home! It's about time, right?"

"Yep!" Mommy agreed.

"You're not putting her in here tonight, are you?"

"Not until she's off the monitor," Callie said. "We'll put her in the basinet in our room."

"Yeah," Arizona nodded.

"Please tell me you're not planning on putting her in her room alone at your place," Callie told Mark. "She's too –"

"No, I wasn't," he replied. "I want her close enough that I know I'll hear the monitor if it goes off."

"Exactly," Callie nodded. "Tonight, do you wanna stay here? On the couch?"

"Sure," he nodded. "That way I can help out."

"And just be here," Arizona said. "This is a huge deal."

"Yeah," he nodded.

Arizona checked her watch. "I told Grandma we'd Skype so she could see you today," she said. "What do you say we go get Mommy's computer?"

Callie smiled and handed the baby over to Arizona.

The little girl started fussing again. "Why so fussy today?" Madre asked, following her girlfriend out of the room.

"Could she be hungry?" Mark asked.

"I don't think so," Arizona said. "But maybe. I think this is just her being fussy, though."

"I'll make a bottle," Callie replied. "Just in case that's it."

"Thanks," Arizona said, sitting down on the couch and turning her computer on. "Shhh! It's okay!"

"You're home, Sofia!" Mark said. "You should be happy, Silly!"

Really, they were all thinking that they'd better get used to this. Sofia's prematurity and her high muscle tone were likely to make for one pretty fussy baby. They had noticed her fussiness had begun a couple weeks ago, and it had been the same since.

Arizona kissed her. "Those silly muscles don't know what they're doin', do they?" she asked her. "Let's see if talking to Grandma helps," she said seconds before her mom's image popped up.

"Well, she doesn't sound happy," Barbara Robbins commented.

"She's not," Arizona said. "But she's home, so it's a good day. Tonight might be rough, but we'll take it."

"So the dress fits?"

"Perfectly."

"Good," she smiled. "You look so big now, Sofia!"

"Say 'I'm still little, but I'm over four pounds now! That's pretty big for me!'"

"It is," she said. "That's good to hear."

"And she had her carseat test and passed it."

"Good."

"And her vision and hearing are within normal ranges," she reported.

"Yay!"

These were two less things to worry about, so hearing this was a major relief.

Sofia stopped crying for just a minute.

"That's better," Mommy said, adjusting the way she was holding Sofia. "Here. Let's turn you around so you can see Grandma."

"Hello!" Grandma smiled. "I'm so happy you're home now."

"I think we all are," Callie said, joining her girlfriend and handing over Sofia's bottle.

"Definitely," Arizona agreed.


	13. Beginning A Future

"Oh, reflux!" Arizona said as Sofia spit up early the next morning.

Reflux was common with premature babies and their girl certainly had quite a bit of it. Sometimes it felt like she was spitting up the entire contents of her bottles. Luckily, they knew that this wasn't the case since Sofia was gaining weight.

"What are we gonna do about that, huh?" she asked, kissing her cheek. "It's no fun, is it?"

It had been a pretty sleepless night. Between the worry that they wouldn't hear the monitor sound and the frequent and high-pitched cries of their little one, nobody had gotten much rest. Mommy was determined to let Madre sleep as much as possible since she was still technically recovering, so she had decided to take Sofia out into the kitchen to make breakfast.

She tried placing her down in her bouncy seat, but the tiny girl wasn't having it. Mommy compromised and put her in a carrier so that her hands were free, but her baby was happier.

"Do you think Madre wants French toast?" Arizona asked. "Because we're lacking in the groceries department, but we have eggs and bread and –"

"Isn't it a little early for a cooking lesson?" Mark yawned as he woke up.

"I just put a pot of coffee on," she replied.

"Thank you," he said as he sat up.

"You look terrible."

"How can one kid cry that much?" he asked. "I mean, I know babies cry, but that can't be how every baby is, right? She has to be more extreme?"

"Yeah," Arizona told him. "She is. It's the reflux and who knows what else. Maybe muscle spasms, too."

Sofia couldn't communicate with them, so much of what she was feeling was a mystery to them. They had given her a warm bath and a little massage before bed in hopes that it would relax her, but they didn't know how well it had worked.

"Yep."

"She seems to like this, though," Arizona smiled as she looked down to the little girl who was pretty happy in her carrier. "Huh, Sof? Does it remind you of being in Madre's belly, all snug and warm?"

"It's still pretty big for her," Mark commented. "I don't know about snug."

"We do our best, right?" Arizona asked.

Callie came out of the bedroom. "She okay?" she asked.

"Fine," Mommy smiled. "Good morning."

"So it's officially morning?" she asked.

"I know," Arizona pouted. "Rough night. But we made it."

"I woke up because it was too quiet," Callie said. "Most mom's wake up because the baby cries. But no. After a couple hours, I got used to that. Now it's weird when she's not screaming."

"Yeah," Arizona agreed. "But we made it through it."

"I'm gonna go shower," Mark said, deciding that the coffee probably wasn't even going to do much good. "You've got everything under control here."

"That we do," she smiled.

Sofia began fussing just a few minutes after Mark left. "Oh, no, no, no," Arizona told her. "Let me cook."

"Here," Callie said, reaching to take Sofia out of the carrier. "Let's hang out. Me and you."

"Sof, if you weren't so fussy, this would be a perfect morning."

"It's not so bad, huh?" Callie asked. "You're home. That's something, isn't it? And your monitor only went off once last night."

"Probably because she hardly calmed down long enough for her body to relax."

"True," she said. "But still."

"Yeah."

"Wanna go get a book to read?" Callie asked. "Mama can cook and we can read a story."

She went into Sofia's room and came back out with a book about a bunny rabbit. Mommy watched in awe of how perfect Callie was in her role as a mom. She was telling Sofia the story in Spanish and their little one was slowly starting to settle again.

"That was a good story, huh?" Arizona asked Sofia as she brought Callie her plate when the French toast was ready. "Mommy didn't understand any of it, but you seemed to think it was okay."

"Are you gonna learn Spanish?" Callie asked the baby. "Huh? Madre can teach you."

"How about we stick to English for now?" Arizona asked.

They had to wonder if Sofia would be able to speak at all – let alone be bilingual. Arizona wasn't about to ask for too much.

"Aim high, right Sof? You can do it!" She kissed her. "Tell Mommy! Say 'Mama, I'm gonna be a chatterbox when I get bigger!'"

"I hope so!"

"And even if not, that's okay," Callie told Sofia. "We just want you to be the best Sofia you can be."

"We're already dishing out the cheesy parental speeches?" Arizona asked.

"It's true," Callie said.

"I know."

"It is true, right?"

Callie knew that she was more than willing to roll with whatever became of Sofia's abilities. Of course, she was hoping for an excellent outcome, but even if the best didn't happen, she would be able to accept that. These last few months had shown her just how lucky she was to be a mother at all. No matter what, Sofia was perfect in her eyes.

"Yep," Arizona said. "Do you still feel like I don't think that?"

"I mean, you're here," she said. "And I know that says a lot. Really."

"But what? Callie, this hasn't been easy, but I'm not going to love her any less if she's not able to talk or walk or anything."

"It's just good to hear you say that," Callie smiled.

"Well, then I guess I'll be saying it every day."

"Good," Callie replied.

Sofia made a little noise, which almost seemed like she wanted to give her own input.

"Do you know we love you?" Arizona asked. "Yeah! You didn't grow in my belly, but we've become pretty close, huh?"

"Two mommies and a daddy," Callie smiled. "How lucky are you, Sof?"

"So much love," Arizona agreed. "And you're in the middle of it all."

"She's gonna be so spoiled."

"No," Arizona said. "There's a difference between loved and spoiled. She won't be that kid who gets whatever she wants because she throws a temper tantrum."

"How can you ever say no to this face?" Callie asked.

"One day that face'll be on a preteen and suddenly I doubt it'll be very hard."

"That's a scary thought, huh?" Callie told the baby.

It was nice for them to finally have a normal family moment when they were looking into the future with hope and positivity. They didn't know details of their daughter's future, but they decided to make it as typical as possible. Now that that was beginning, it was a relief.


	14. A Little Visit

Sofia's parents settled into a routine quickly once she was home, but they still found having to take care of a sick preemie to be extremely hard. Of course, being that she was a first baby, they couldn't compare having her to having any other child, but they imagined that most babies weren't this demanding. Sofia was now five-and-a-half months old and she still cried excessively and rarely slept for any decent length of time. Obviously, they wouldn't trade her for the world, but they did wish things were easier.

As always, the tiny girl stirred early, letting out the fussy sounds that would soon turn into her unusually high-pitched cries. Arizona never even bothered to set an alarm clock now; there was simply no needed.

She took a breath and convinced herself to get up.

"I can –" she heard her girlfriend begin.

"No," Arizona said. "I've got her."

"You've always got her in the mornings, unless she's at Mark's. You're going to work and I'm home with her. I should –"

Arizona and Mark had returned to work full-time, but Callie wasn't going back for another two weeks.

"That's even more reason for me to do it," Arizona said, as she picked Sofia up out of the bassinett that was still placed beside the bed. "Right, Sof? Mommy and Baby time is important, right?"

"Could Mommy and Baby time involve making coffee?" Callie smiled.

"Sure," Arizona said. "As soon as this dirty diaper gets changed. Let's take care of that first, Miss Sofia."

She laid down the blanket that they were using as a makeshift changing pad at the foot of the bed and began changing the little one. Callie sat up in bed, just watching Arizona interact with Sofia. Sofia's cries didn't even faze the Pediatric surgeon; she just kept on talking to her, hoping that she'd calm down eventually.

"Mommy's gonna bring the rest of your preemie diapers to work today," Arizona said. "You're too big for them. Newborn ones are the way to go now, huh?"

"Finally," Madre commented.

"Yep."

"Almost done!" Arizona said as Sofia's little face turned more and more red and the fists her hands made were even tighter than usual. "It's a diaper change! I'm not hurtin' my Sofia!"

"Our poor neighbours," Callie replied. "They must hate us."

"One of them's daddy," Arizona said, not bothering to dress Sofia just yet.

Instead, she just put her sleeper back on, picked her up, and held her against her shoulder, slowly rubbing circles on her back.

"At least the whole floor doesn't hate us," she added.

"True."

"And how could anyone hate this sweet face?" she asked, running her hand over Sofia's dark locks. "So pretty. Just like Madre."

"What time do you work until today? Any guesses?"

"It's a long day," she admitted. "I have four scheduled surgeries, a couple consults, and a few post-op appointments. And that's not even including the inevitable emergency."

"So I shouldn't plan on seeing you for dinner?"

"Not tonight," she said, biting her lip. "Sorry."

"It comes with the job," Callie said. "I know. It's just that the days are so long. I love being home with her, but I miss you."

"I know."

* * *

><p>It had been a rough morning, but the afternoon wasn't so bad. Sofia had ate well and she had actually gotten a considerable amount of sleep, making her relatively content. Madre didn't want to push it, but she also saw this as a chance to get out of the house. They hadn't been able to do that much because Sofia usually wasn't very happy and they just weren't going to brave being out in public with a child who was that upset.<p>

Unfortunately, Arizona was in surgery when they arrived. Still, Callie wasn't about to head home. Sofia was still happy and Madre had packed up everything in order to go out. They were staying as long as possible.

While they waited, Callie figured that they could watch Mommy operate. "See? Mommy's taking out that boy's appendix. He looks kind of young for appendicitis, but it can happen. Yep! And luckily, appys don't take long so we can see Mama soon!"

"You brought your baby up here?" Alex asked as he joined Callie and Sofia in the gallery.

"I needed adult contact," Callie said. "And she's happy which isn't usually the case. So yes, I brought her to watch an appy."

"How is she?"

"Good," Callie replied. "She doesn't even need the oxygen or the monitor overnight anymore and she started physio yesterday. Which wasn't fun, but it'll help. Hopefully. The colic…it's not even colic. It's so far beyond normal colic that it's –"

"Yeah."

"But she's home and she's doing good," she smiled. "For the most part."

"Good."

Sofia started fussing just as Arizona left the OR to scrub out. "Don't start now!" Callie said, picking up the diaper bag as she rose to her feet. "We're gonna go see Mommy!"

"She's just trying to tell you she wishes she got to see something far more interesting than an appy," Alex joked.

"Is that it?" Callie laughed. "Huh?"

* * *

><p>"What are you doing here?" Arizona asked when they were waiting for her outside of the scrub room. "She okay? You okay?"<p>

"Yeah," Callie said, handing their infant over. "We just wanted to come visit. Up until five minutes ago, she was happy and you're working late, so…"

"About that…"

"How much later?"

"Don't wait up."

"Oh."

"But I do have a few minutes for lunch," Arizona said. "I wrapped that one up early and I'm still waiting on some labs for my next patient."

"Sounds good."

Arizona kissed Sofia. "How's a pacifier sound?" she asked her. "Will that make you happy?"

"Hopefully."

"I went and confirmed her spot at the daycare today," Arizona said. "She's all set."

"And they know how much work she'll be?"

"They do," she nodded. "But they've had similar babies before, so they say they can handle it."

"Good."

"Are you excited to start daycare?" Arizona asked as she dug a pacifier out of the diaper bag that was on her girlfriend's shoulder and gave it to her daughter. "You'll make friends and you'll learn and you'll do all kinds of fun stuff!"

"And we'll hate dropping you off," Madre said. "But we have to."

"Yeah."

Dr. Bailey was on the elevator as they got on. "Well, what are you doin' here?"

"Well, she just watched her first appy," Callie said. "And now we're gonna go eat some lunch. Aren't we, Sof?"

"She's so big," she said. "Well, she's tiny, but compared to the last time I saw her."

"Six pounds, eight and a half ounces as of yesterday," Mommy stated proudly. "She's officially out of preemie diapers and she only has one preemie sleeper that still fits."

"Good!"


End file.
